Micro-Flying — 2005/05
HELLO MICRO-FLYING FANS! This month I have a harvest of new projects. I asked for you to share your efforts and you came through. Excellent! But first I will give an update on the National Indoor Remote-Controlled Aircraft Council (NIRAC) Championships for 2005.
NIRAC 2005 update
The site for the event is definite. It will again be at the golf dome in Waterford, Michigan, in early October—probably the first weekend. Work is ongoing relative to the event lineup as I write this, but one thing is certain: there will be much more time allocated for open flying this time.
This year's contest director (CD) will be Bob Wilder. I bet he can get it better organized than I did. Check the NIRAC Web site (www.nirac.org) for the most current information.
Club news
I want to thank Hal Stewart, newsletter editor of the Central New York Indoor Flying Society, who has been most generous in sharing this active group's publication. With 45 members, the club is an impressive size and the members have managed to mix free flight (FF) and RC in the same facility. The pictures in the newsletter show that the members have a wide variety of interests in their projects.
These lucky people have access to a church's activities building twice a week to do their thing. If you happen to be in the area and would like to make contact, Hal's address is:
- 8918 Speach Dr., Baldwinsville, NY 13027.
Some of us may be missing the boat on facilities such as this. Have you checked with area churches that have suitable activities buildings? Not all would welcome model flying, but it only takes one.
Featured projects
Ferrell Papic — 28" YB-2
Ferrell Papic, 300 W. Lincoln #82, Orange, CA 92665, sent a picture and some information about an impressive project. His model is a 28-inch-wingspan YB-2, but the "goodie" is the motor. Ferrell explains:
"I am sending you photos of my 4-ounce, three-channel, 28-inch-wingspan RC YB-2 that is powered with a dime-size 14-gram, 14mm laptop CD brushless motor that I rewound with 60 turns of 34-gauge magnet wire.
"The motor mount was made from metal and plastic tubing that I pressed onto a hardwood dowel mounted on the airplane. The aluminum propeller mount was turned on a lathe and pressed onto the 2mm motor shaft. I replaced the stock bell-ring magnet with 12 1 x 4 x 5mm neodymium magnets from www.gobrushless.com.
"At full power from three 145 mAh Li-Poly batteries, the motor turns the GWS 5 x 3 propeller at 11,000 rpm and draws one amp. Using two 250 mAh Li-Poly batteries, the motor turns the same propeller 9,000 rpm and draws 0.6 amp."
I was impressed with this bit of craftsmanship and engineering. Way to go, Ferrell! Thanks for sharing.
Ron C. Thomas — Tadpole (1948 Howard McEntee design)
Ron C. Thomas, 17 Red Oak Ln., Alexander, NC 28701, went way back to a 1948 Howard McEntee design. The original model was intended for a Campus A-100 CO2 motor and was 13 inches in length with an 18-inch wingspan—a free-flight model. Model Airplane News published the plans in the centerfold of the November 1948 edition. Howard called the model the Tadpole for fairly obvious reasons.
The modern version of the aircraft is constructed from foam, with 1/32 stock for the wing and tail surfaces. Ron took a non-scale approach. It is powered with a KP-00 motor spinning a U-80 propeller and draws electricity from a single 145 mAh Li-Poly cell. Controls are provided by a JMP receiver that operates two Bob Selman mini actuators.
Ron did not comment on the aircraft's flying qualities, but I'll bet it goes like a bird. McEntee's designs were always noted for their excellent flight characteristics. Good show, Ron.
Dick Keith — scaled-down Coronet
The next model is a scaled-down Coronet, built by Dick Keith. The photo shows the airplane raring to get up into the blue. Specifications include:
- Wingspan: 32 inches
- Length: 23 inches
- Propeller: 5 x 4
Power and equipment:
- Motor: ElectriFly T-280, direct drive
- Battery: seven-cell 350 mAh NiMH pack
- Receiver: Hitec Feather
- Servos: two Hitec HS-50 (tail)
- ESC: ElectriFly C-10
Covering: Solarfilm from Sky Hooks and Rigging (highly recommended). A similar material is Solite from Balsa Products (www.balspr.com).
I included one of the photos mainly because I have never seen so many modelers show an interest in a small electric airplane. From the left are:
- Bo Broughman
- Holden Broughman
- Dick Keith
- Robert Anderson
- William (Bill) Riley
- Jim Whitehead
The smaller Coronet reportedly flies really well, with flight times ranging from eight to ten minutes. Way to go, Dick!
My latest micro project — clipped-wing Taylorcraft
My latest micro project is a model of the clipped-wing Taylorcraft with a wingspan of 15.5 inches. It weighs 30 grams with the colored paint finish.
Most of the structure is 1/32 balsa with a few blocks in the cowling. I think the wood I used was heavier than what I normally work with. Weight is so sneaky; you don't know what you will have until the model is finished. Fortunately, no one told the little airplane that it is overweight, because it flies just great.
Finishing: I tried a new product from the craft store recommended by Scott Christensen: Delta Stencil Magic Top Coat Satin Spray. Sprayed on the bare wood and sanded with very fine paper, after roughly three coats the surface is excellent and the weight gain is practically nothing. I bought it at a Ben Franklin craft store here in Virginia; Scott bought his at a Wal-Mart in the Midwest, so it is worth checking around.
Power and radio:
- Motor: LV M20 geared 6:1, spinning a 5 x 4 propeller
- Battery: 230 mAh Li-Poly
- Receiver: RFFS-100
- Actuators: Dynamic Web Enterprises / Dynamics Unlimited (DWE/DU) magnetic actuators
- Plastic parts (including little horns): Gary Hutchison (available from DWE/DU at www.slowfly.com)
- Wing retention: two graphite pegs and some magnets for easy removal
Flight characteristics: The little Taylorcraft flies well. It has good slow-flight characteristics and excellent turning qualities, but it was not always that way. The first flight featured a smaller (nearly scale) vertical tail and the model had a nasty Dutch roll whenever it was disturbed from level flight.
To test a theory, I taped some balsa onto the vertical tail and it made a vast improvement. This led to cutting another complete vertical tail, swapping it with the other, and the problem was solved.
Why all of this? The full-scale machine has a small propeller blade relative to the size of the aircraft. When I built my model I used the propeller that works well with this drive. I had forgotten that a nose-mounted propeller is a destabilizing force on an airplane, and such a drastic change was enough to push it over the edge.
We never really quit learning, do we?
Happy flying. MA
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
